Happy Example Site Wednesday everybody! By now you all know that every week on Wednesday we showcase an example site that we feel stands above the rest. This week we are showcasing The Silver Door, a specialist consultancy company for the Hospitality industry. Their website is clean, well organized and professional. Take a look for yourself:

In addition to having an easy to browse website, the owner has created brand identity for their business by adding a logo to the header section of the website.

If you are looking to create your own website logo, here are a few website logo design tips:

Research First — Prior to deciding which direction your logo should go in, find out what your competitors are doing and what is common in your industry. Remember the goal of a logo is to create a brand image that helps you stand apart from your competitors. Quick tip: Your logo doesn’t have to communicate exactly what your company does but should communicate who you are. Some of today’s best known logos do not show what the company does, but rather who they are:

Keep it Simple — Once you have decided upon the direction of your new logo, try to create a couple of sketches of your ideas. The goal is to come up with the simplest design that can be easy for your website visitors to remember. Plus a simple logo is much easier to resize. Remember your logo is your identity and should be displayed on all your marketing memorabilia: website, print brochures, business cards, etc.

Review — Once you have chosen your favorite sketch, test it out. Show your new logo idea to couple people that fall within the target audience whom your business/service targets. See if the ideas you hoped to convey, match their perception. In addition, remember your logo ideas should match your company’s spirit and should be appropriate for your anticipated target audience.

Select Your Color — Don’t worry about selecting the color of your logo until you feel confident the correct design has been selected. Select the color of your logo based on the image and feelings you wish to convey. Do some research into colors — some colors make people angry, some make people relaxed, some even make people hungry. Remember that the color you choose for your logo, should be used throughout the entire design of your website and other marketing materials in order to build your brand identity, so make it one you can live with. Doing so will provide a uniformed and professional look.

Not sure about how to start your research and sketching process? Check —out an app from LogoGizmo that makes it super easy for you to create the logo you need for your website.

About the Author: Irina Kabigting is Webs’ Social Media Marketing Manager. Get more from Irina on Webs’ Blog and Google+.

Very professional website! I also like how the services on offer are right on the homepage in bullet points – so the user can find out immediately what The Silver Door is providing. It’s also about the right amount of information on the homepage so the user doesn’t have to read paragraphs of information just to find out what the website is about – and if they want more information, the nav bar with scroll-down menus works well. I also like the image shadows 🙂

Nice tips, also. 🙂 Logos are very important in businesses to show brand identity and professionalism. It also helps the user remember the product or website just by the logo – so it doesn’t slip out their head. McDonalds’ for instance, has an “M” – and as soon as you see it (whether you eat from McDonalds’ or not) you will immedietly know it’s McDonalds.

The tip “A good logo is describable, effective without color, memorable & scalable” from David Airey is a really good tip because you need to be able to effectively use your logo without the use of color – so if you use too much color in a logo, you will not be able to use the logo in black and white with all the letters readable.